1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is broadly concerned with a solid nutritional food such as bars or cubes and methods of making the same. More particularly, the invention pertains to nutritional bars which can be formulated to provide 100% of the recommended daily allowances of various vitamins, minerals, and other supplements for animals or humans. In one embodiment, the bars of the invention provide nutritional components which are deficient in the animal or human's body or diet. In addition to the supplemental ingredients, the bars include a sugar-based sweetening ingredient and a quantity of a fat. In a preferred embodiment, the bars weigh about 1 lb. and are scored into forty, 1 inch.times.1 inch bite-size squares which can be readily consumed, thus ensuring delivery of the desired supplemental nutrients and ingredients.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Molasses-based feed supplements have long been used to enhance the diets of and to provide energy for livestock. Such supplements are commonly in the form of a solid block and are placed in a pasture or stockyard for ad libitum consumption by the animals. However, with prior art solid block supplements, it is extremely difficult if not impossible, for the animal to consume the required amount of daily vitamins and minerals. This difficulty arises from the fact that the prior art feed blocks are large and very hard, making it extremely difficult and often impossible for the animal to chew. Thus, the animal must lick the block in order to consume the supplemental ingredients. As a result, the farmer is unable to determine the quantity of vitamins and minerals consumed by the animal. Thus, the farmer cannot be certain that the animal has consumed the desired quantity of vitamins, minerals, and other supplements.
Human nutritional bars have been introduced which provide a portion of the minerals and vitamins recommended by the U.S. Government for good health. However, these bars have generally been high in moisture, resulting in a limited shelf life. Furthermore, these bars do not contain 100% of the RDA for humans of vitamins, minerals, and other supplements, nor do they contain varying levels of particular vitamins or minerals to compensate for deficiency of a certain vitamins or minerals in a particular person. Thus, a person with a calcium deficiency receives the same quantity of calcium from the prior art nutritional bars as a person who does not need additional calcium in his or her diet. Finally, many of the prior art bars have an unappealing taste, thus causing many people to avoid them.
There is a need for animal nutritional bars which can be formulated to provide high percentages of the RDA of vitamins and minerals as required by appropriate medical and governmental organizations. This bar should be easily adapted for human consumption, and should be capable of being specifically formulated to provide deficient vitamins, minerals, proteins, etc. to persons or animals having such a deficiency.